Women's investment activities and record keeping

Women's investment activities and record keeping

Distiller's wife sent adventure to sea with master of the Sara Bonadventure [1634]

Jane Hendell, fifty year old wife of James Hendell, distiller of Saint Olaves in the borough of Southwark, Surrey. Sent an adventure with the master of a ship called the Sara Bonadventure. Deposed January 1635.

“Within the tyme arlate the arlate William Hyatt was master of the shipp the Sara Bonadventure, which shee knoweth to bee true for that within that tyme shee dyned aboard that shippe and sent an adventure to sea with him the sayd Hyatt.

Uppon the firste day of September laste was twelve monethes , the arlate William Yeames and William Hyatt came to this examinate’s husbandes house beinge a distiller of stronge water, and called for stronge waters to drincke, and there treated concerninge some worke that the said Hyatt was desirous that the said Yeams being a shipp carpenter shoulde doe uppon the said shippe the Sara Bonadventure and from this examinate’s house they wente to a taverne called the King’s Head in Southwarke and carried this examinate alonge with them to that taverne to bee a witnes to their bargaine, and at that taverne it was aggreed betweene the said Hyatt and Yeames in this examinate’s presence, that the said Yeams should cutt tenn ports in the said shippe and lay her gunroome and calke her above water and grave her belowe and above and finde all stuffe and materialls for the same, but whether hee was to doe any other worcke or noe shee cannott now remember, but shee sayeth that for that worcke which the said Yeams then aggreed with the said Hyatt to doe to the said shippe the said Hyatt did aggree with him that he should have sixteene poundes, and shee sayeth that the said Hyatt intreated this examinate dwelling neere the yard where the said Yeams wrought uppon the sayd shippe, to sea the worcke, and shee sayeth that shee was aboard the said shippe and dyned aboard her after the worcke was donn, and sawe that all the worcke had bin donn uppon the said shippe that was aggreed uppon in this examinate’s presence as aforesaid, as alsoe an overplus of worcke, but the perticulers therof shee remembreth not, nor the vallue therof, and shee sayeth that at the same tyme when the bargaine aforesaid was made betweene the said Yeams and Hyatt, they did aggree that one James Corbett then an apprentice to the said Yeames should goe carpenter in the said shippe in a voyage to the Westerne Islandes, but shee doeth not well remember what wages the said Hyatt caused to give the said Yeames for his foresaid servant, but to her now best remembrance it was thirty shillings a moneth, And she sayeth that after the said shippe returned from her voyage, the said Hyatt came to this examinate and intreated her to speake to the said Yeames to forbeare the monies that were due to him for the worcke that hee had donn uppon the said shippe, untill he had delivered his goods and receive his freighte and then hee would pay him the same, And this shee affirmeth to bee true, who formerly was a shipp carpenter’s wife and often sawe Yeames and his servants at worcke uppon the said shippe and was present when Corbett was bounde an apprentice to him the said Yeames.”

---

Widow of a mariner needed to recover a book from the papers of another deceased mariner John Norris [16XX]

Jeremy White, a twenty-nine year old London haberdasher, originally from Gloucestershire, was required by the High Court of Admiralty to produce a handwritten book formally belonging to a now deceased Ratcliffe mariner. White had acquired the book from the home of Jane Pinder, the widow of a mariner named John Norris, perceiving that there were clean pages within the book. However, the book also contained notes of relevance to a court case brought by John Trigges, the now husband of Jane Pinder, on Jane’s behalf.

[Regarding the allegation and book exhibited] “He affirmed that aboute three yeares past one John Norris a mariner beinge att sea died and by his will gave all that he had as he remembreth to Simon Pinder and Jane his wiffe who is nowe wife to the articulated John Triggis, and thereuppon this examinate was requested by the said Jane Pinder, nowe Jane Trigges whether togeather with a gold smithe called George [?Jole] to appraise such goods as the said John Norris had in his house in Ratcliffe and in perusinge such bookes and papers as were in the said house amongst the rest the booke exhibited nowe shewed unto him at the tyme of his examination was founde in an upper cubbard, and the same booke this examinate intreated the said Jane Pinder to bestowe uppon him for that there was cleane paper therein which he had occasion to use, and she accordingly gave it unto him and the same booke he ever since kepte untill he was served with a proces to appeare in this Court and then he delivered the said booke to the said Joane for that she sayd it concerned her, And he sayth that the severall notes sett downe in the 2nd and 6th leaves of the said booke firmed in the name per me William Jones in some places and in one place by Mr William Jones were in the said booke so written and sett downe as by the said booke appeareth when the said booke came to this examinates handes”